Virtual Domotic Systems: a 3D Interaction Technique to Control Virtual Building Devices Using Residential Gateways

Residential gateways are systems based on different control technologies that provide a unified way of communication for various devices and appliances present in homes and buildings (sensors, control systems, electronic devices, etc.). The massive introduction of residential gateways in the market is often hindered by the lack of intuitive configuration and visualization interfaces. Moreover, users frequently obtain very limited feedback about the status of the building after the actions carried out by the residential gateway, what reduces the confidence in such systems. This paper presents a Virtual Domotic System (VDS), an innovative solution to provide a Virtual Reality interface to manage residential gateways. VDS comprises three main blocks. The first of them is the residential gateway and the associated control devices of the building. The second element is an advanced 3D Virtual Environment that reliably represents the building, the state of control devices and the environmental characteristics (such as lighting or temperature). Finally, the system includes the software that enables the communication and synchronization between the virtual environment and the control technologies and appliances of the building. The VDS introduces a new 3D interaction technique, where the inputs that modify and configure the 3D virtual environment come directly from the sensors and actuators installed in the buildin

Digitalisation of public procurement: The case study of Ukraine

Theoretical background: There is an ongoing global acceleration of automation and digitalisation in financial processes, which points to significant changes in public spending policies. After an analysis of several scientific studies, fundamental approaches have been elaborated to understand public consumption and the system of state purchases. The basic hypothesis for this research was to study the possible impact of the electronic procurement market ProZorro on state purchases in Ukraine. Possible directions are: increasing competitiveness, optimising state expenditures and saving the budget funds of public services based on innovative digital technology.Purpose of the article: The main goal is to investigate the impact of the electronic public procurement system ProZorro on corruption and bureaucracy in the public sector of Ukraine. The study object is an analysis of the volume and structure of the public procurement market, the number of procedures and participants in a bidding process, and the savings amounts in ProZorro’s public purchases during the study period in Ukraine.Research methods: The following methods were used during the research of the Ukrainian electronic procurement system: dialectical method; analysis and synthesis method – for a comparison of certain types of public procurement; subthreshold and suprathreshold statistical methods – for analysing the dynamics of indicators of the domestic system of public procurement during the period under research for a comparison of the indicators of public consumption of certain ministries and departments, different regions and territorial entities; structural and logical analysis – for generalising the theoretical and methodological principles of building a public consumption system in Ukraine. The main source of data was the data and analytical base of the ProZorro electronic public procurement system.Main findings: Effects of the innovative digital paradigm on the transparency and efficiency of public procurement are determined. Considerable attention is paid to the implementation of the electronic public procurement system ProZorro in Ukraine. The expediency is substantiated for its implementation in the national practice of budget expenditures, and the principles and procedures of implementation are analysed. The practice and dynamics of the public procurement market in Ukraine are summarised. The conclusions of the advantages of electronic system are provided, including transparency and impartiality, stimulation of competition and non-discrimination of bidding participants, reduction of corruption and the effect of reducing the savings of budget funds. Potential risks, threats and disadvantages of the ProZorro system in Ukraine are highlighted. Among them are: a high proportion of non-competitive procedures; possible latent conflict regarding the participants’ interests; unreasonable time spent on individual procedures; the justification of the procurement procedure to one participant due to a dubious “urgent need”; unreasonable application of the procurement procedure to one participant due to the falsification of conditions or the division of the procurement subject; the existence of discriminatory requirements in the documentation of competitive bidding; and a lack of efficiency in the complaints handling mechanism.Theoretical background: There is an ongoing global acceleration of automation and digitalisation in financial processes, which points to significant changes in public spending policies. After an analysis of several scientific studies, fundamental approaches have been elaborated to understand public consumption and the system of state purchases. The basic hypothesis for this research was to study the possible impact of the electronic procurement market ProZorro on state purchases in Ukraine. Possible directions are: increasing competitiveness, optimising state expenditures and saving the budget funds of public services based on innovative digital technology.Purpose of the article: The main goal is to investigate the impact of the electronic public procurement system ProZorro on corruption and bureaucracy in the public sector of Ukraine. The study object is an analysis of the volume and structure of the public procurement market, the number of procedures and participants in a bidding process, and the savings amounts in ProZorro’s public purchases during the study period in Ukraine.Research methods: The following methods were used during the research of the Ukrainian electronic procurement system: dialectical method; analysis and synthesis method – for a comparison of certain types of public procurement; subthreshold and suprathreshold statistical methods – for analysing the dynamics of indicators of the domestic system of public procurement during the period under research for a comparison of the indicators of public consumption of certain ministries and departments, different regions and territorial entities; structural and logical analysis – for generalising the theoretical and methodological principles of building a public consumption system in Ukraine. The main source of data was the data and analytical base of the ProZorro electronic public procurement system.Main findings: Effects of the innovative digital paradigm on the transparency and efficiency of public procurement are determined. Considerable attention is paid to the implementation of the electronic public procurement system ProZorro in Ukraine. The expediency is substantiated for its implementation in the national practice of budget expenditures, and the principles and procedures of implementation are analysed. The practice and dynamics of the public procurement market in Ukraine are summarised. The conclusions of the advantages of electronic system are provided, including transparency and impartiality, stimulation of competition and non-discrimination of bidding participants, reduction of corruption and the effect of reducing the savings of budget funds. Potential risks, threats and disadvantages of the ProZorro system in Ukraine are highlighted. Among them are: a high proportion of non-competitive procedures; possible latent conflict regarding the participants’ interests; unreasonable time spent on individual procedures; the justification of the procurement procedure to one participant due to a dubious “urgent need”; unreasonable application of the procurement procedure to one participant due to the falsification of conditions or the division of the procurement subject; the existence of discriminatory requirements in the documentation of competitive bidding; and a lack of efficiency in the complaints handling mechanism

Suitability of BIM for enhancing value on PPP projects for the benefit of the public sector

Collaborative integrated working and stakeholder’s interest have been among key drivers that underpin and encourage the use of Building Information Modelling (BIM) within the AEC industry. BIM is becoming a major means to deliver projects with better improved product, and reduced risk within the construction industry. Furthermore, using BIM in areas like buildability, quality assurance, cost and scheduling can be justified through BIM-nD modelling application. What is not so obvious is how the utilisation of BIM visualisation and knowledge embedment will enhance these areas to refine and achieve better value for PPP procurement projects for the long term benefit especially during post-construction phase for the public sector. As of now there is no well-defined guidance with respect to BIM usage incorporating all of the above. Do we really need to revisit the way we specify projects within the contractual framework under PPP? This paper examines the possibility of how BIM can be utilised in the realisation of augmented formal database information management system under the PPP procurement routes with respect to operation and maintenance support. The paper concludes with additional measures that BIM can offer at the post-construction phase for the public sector at learning organisations

Lessons learnt from the broadband diffusion in South Korea and the UK: Implications for future government intervention in technology diffusion

Governments around the globe are rapidly introducing e-government initiatives with the role of the internet being regarded as pertinent. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) offer the capacity to an improved internet. Broadband technology is a form of ICT that is currently being adopted and diffused in many countries. In this paper, we outline how the role of the government can sustain broadband adoption. We use a framework developed by King et al. regarding institutional actions related to IT diffusion and examine the institutional actions taken by the South Korean government (hereafter referred as Korea) and we compare them with relevant policies pursued in Britain (hereafter referred as UK). We demonstrate that a comparison between the IT policies of the two countries allows research to extract the 'success factors' in government intervention in supporting technology diffusion, in order to render favourable results if applied elsewhere

A Philadelphia Story: Building Civic Capacity for School Reform in a Privatizing System

Following the 2001 state takeover of the School District of Philadelphia, a new governance structure was established and an ambitious set of reforms went into effect, generating renewed public confidence in the district. Despite this, maintaining reform momentum continues to be difficult in Philadelphia. This can be traced to on-going challenges to civic capacity around education. Defined by Stone et al (2001), civic capacity involves collaboration and mobilization of the city's civic and community sectors to pursue the collective good of educational improvement. Using interviews conducted with over 65 local civic actors and district administrators, and case studies of local organizations involved with education, the authors examine civic capacity in the context of Philadelphia. The authors find that while many individuals and organizations are actively involved with the schools, there are several factors that present unique challenges to the development of civic capacity in Philadelphia. Despite these challenges, the authors conclude that there are many reasons to be optimistic and offer several recommendations for generating civic capacity -- the kind that creates and sustains genuine educational change